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Sept. 21, 2004
Developer tells how offices, homes will
mesh in South End
Project designed to suit industrial
cityscape and Dilworth neighborhood
DOUG SMITH
Office renters will share the view
with residential condo owners on the top three floors of The Village of
Southend, under construction on
South Boulevard
across from SouthEnd Brewery.
Developer David Furman of
Boulevard Centro always intended to mix offices with 113 residential units
and street-level shops, but this is the first time he has explained how he
will do it.
Instead of the more common
practice of selling office condos or live-work units in such projects,
Furman is finishing 12 for-lease suites on floors two, three and four to
move-in condition.
Renters need only pick up a door
key, haul in their furniture and start doing business.
The office spaces -- atop the
village's first-floor commercial condos -- range from 858 to 2,036 square
feet and lease for $1,300 to $3,350 a month.
Typically, developers of such
projects sell offices as condos and offer buyers a construction allowance
to finish spaces themselves.
But in the South End real estate
market, which has a variety of for-lease and for-sale office space, Furman
thought finished rental suites would be more competitive.
So far, tenants have reserved
four, said Boulevard Centro's Ashley Ackerman, who is in charge of leasing
the office space.
At least one interested business
person is considering getting closer to his work by renting a suite and
buying a residential condo in the same building, he said.
Suites include conference rooms,
bathrooms, coffee break areas with sinks and cabinets, storage niches,
high-speed Internet wiring, hardwood floors in lobby and conference areas,
and carpet in office areas.
One of the initial buyers plans to
combine two units, Ackerman said.
The largest suites have small
balconies with views of the uptown skyline. Tenants park free in the
village's 144-space garage and outdoor plaza. Units have elevator access
from the lobby.
Furman, who announced plans for
the $27.5 million village about two years ago, said the first residential
condo buyers should start moving in by mid-October.
The 175,000-square-foot project
includes four "communities," each featuring different designs,
sizes and price ranges on a block bounded by
South Boulevard
,
Magnolia Avenue
,
McDonald Avenue
and
Euclid Avenue
.
The four-story building facing
South Boulevard
and including the office and retail space was designed to blend with the
industrial streetscape of South End.
Units along the back of the
building facing
Euclid Avenue
feature traditional residential design to mesh with houses in Dilworth.
They "step down" to
three stories on
Euclid
from four stories along
South Boulevard
to create more of a neighborhood feel, Furman said.
The smallest residential condos
sold for about $89,000.
Boulevard Centro's Elizabeth
Phares, who is handing residential sales, said only 12 two-level
residential lofts remain. They are priced from the mid-$140,000s to the
$160,000s and range from 700 to 890 square feet.
Crosland Inc.'s commercial
division handled sales of the 6,500-square-feet of street-level
commercial/retail condos in the village.
The division's Eric Vargosko, vice
president, said all of the space has been sold to real estate investors
and businesses, including an Internet cafe operator.
Crosland also completed the
renovation and expansion of a 1940s industrial building as part of The
Village of Southend.
Vargosko said furniture retailer
EQ3 and an advertising agency have leased space, leaving only 3,400 square
feet available.
Furman said one of his goals was
to develop a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use community, where people could
live, work and shop.
The
Village
of
Southend
is within walking distance of a trolley stop and a planned light-rail line
paralleling
South Boulevard
. Light-rail service is to start in October 2006.
Doug Smith
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